Today the day started with rain delaying the
day’s ride. No problem. We needed an excuse to sleep in anyhow.

Madison, the state capital, is a city of 200,000
people and is abutted by other small cities (Monona for example). Two of
the five area lakes create a narrow isthmus where downtown is located. The
state capital legislative building sits in this area. The legislative building
with its with dome and golden statue on top is surrounded or guarded by
a set of square roads. From this square road network emanates a number of
streets outward. One of these streets, State Street, runs out from one of
corners of the square roads diagonally to the university.

On Labour Day Monday the road was closed off
to cars allowing pedestrians and cyclists free access to it. Closure of
this road enhances the community feeling of this shopping street.

A sushi restaurant was visited for lunch (sushi
restaurant number 2 in Madison, number 3 was closed today, future visit
this week) followed by a Wisconsin home made ice cream and yogurt parlour.

Cycling is definitely prominent within this
city. Walking into a couple of bike stores on the isthmus, road bikes seem
to be very popular. The bike shops were very complete in stock and had a
good selection of bikes and merchandise.

Greater Madison seems to have an extensive network
of bike routes (in Madison, this term is used to include all types of cycling
facilities on and off-road) allowing for good movement through the area.

Work is underway to connect these facilities
to trails to other cities and also to the State of Illinois.

Cycling through the city on a network of off-road
bike trails is one of the pleasant experiences in Madison. Occasionally,
one needs to go on the road for part of the ride. Frequently, these roads
are quiet or have bike lanes. Part of one trail is abutted with community
gardens where the “farmers” rent the ad by the amount they occupy.

This network of of-road trails would appeal
to a much broader base of the public and encourage them to consider cycling
as their transportation mode for the next trip. Having a fleet of buses
that will take bikes enhances the use of the trails.

Cycling into Milwaukee

Cycling into Milwaukee really started in Dodgeville
some 200 kilometres to the west. From there, most of the trip was on bike
trails with occasional sections on roads. Many of these roads had a low
volume of motorized vehicle traffic. Some had paved shoulders. Others did
not. Some of the trails were interconnected. Others were not and required
some road cycling.

Today, the trip included the Capital City State
Trail and the Isthmus State Trail.